Hutheesing Jain temple: A creative realism

A Jain temple, with fifteenth Tirthankar- Jina Dharmanatha as the principle deity, was realized in two years, at the cost of about Rs8 lakh in 1847 AD by Harkunvar Shethani, the wife of late Sheth Hutheesing Kesri, a wealthy trader from Ahmedabad. Premchand Salat being the architect and master craftsman, the temple is one of the finest explorations of the creative regionalism where the classical is combined with the vernacular. It has morphed stone into wood and temple in to 'Haveli' with domestic elements as well as traditional motifs.

This gives new meaning to construction material as well as an added dimension to temple form. Typical three part temple structure flanked by the circumambulatory is added with the entrance porch as an overlay of gateway architecture from local houses. Elements like zarokhas, chhajas and jaalis are adopted from the domestic architecture. Essentially wooden elements of pol houses they are cast in to stone in the temple. Motifs like 'vyala' from far eastern region further add to this spirit of positive assimilation, as reminders of the family's trade ties with these regions then.

The west facing temple has eight pillared octagonal frame supporting the twelve ring semi circular dome over the Nritya mandapa. This along the axis leads to Gudh manadapa having double height volume and walled off space with doors positioned in cardinal directions. The sanctum sanctorum is an attached cell housing five deities in three bay sanctuary.

The temple even has the basement enshrining two sub shrines and six deities. The temple structure is flanked by colonnaded circumambulatory with fifty two sub shrines along its passage. The temple also has recently built six storey tall 'Manastambha'- pilar of respect, enshrining the footsteps and idol of Jina Mahavir, built to commemorate two and a half millennium of his birth anniversary.

The Hutheesing Jain temple at Ahmedabad creates a spatial sequence to attain one to one dialogue with the divine through shifting movement axis and gradual morphing of spaces. The architectural resolution helps create such conditioning through its space organization and juxtaposition of space making elements. 

At Hutheesing temple the victory tower becomes the first visual reference and the focus from a distance. The next space sequence begins with the extended, axially aligned entrance pavillion with ascending steps, a gateway and the first floor mass.

The entrance gateway brings one enface the main shrine but here, the circumambulatory takes over. The peripheral ambulatory passage is created by a collonade. Each intercolumnation is punctuated by a niche for tirthankara idols whose presence throughout the journey starts conditioning the mind.

The continuous path is punctuated with the enhanced flooring pattern, change in column rhythm and heightened shikhara size at cardinal points which help establish pause and cross references to the main shrine to which they align. After circumambulation, the journey further is axial.

Where ascending steps, rising shikhara profiles, decreasing intensity of  light aided by religious sculptures etc. help create gradual sense of withdrawal from the corporeal world. The Hutheesing temple is yet another glorious example of movement guiding perception and exalting the physical journey into a personal intuitive experience.

Not only the spectacular colonnade, or the exquisite carvings, or the assimilative explorations; the temple is also noteworthy for its traditional practices of rain water harvesting which has been kept alive and can be found in practice even till date.

The author is a Ahmedabad-based architect and historian